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Round 1, Game 1: Habs continue dominance
posted by Kevin Mio at 18h27 EST on Apr 10
With the crowd still standing and cheering the national anthems, Sergei Kostitsyn opened the scoring 34 seconds into the game when he pounced on a rebound from a Patrice Brisebois shot, sending the raucous crowd into a euphoric scream.
Only 90 seconds later, Sergei's older brother, Andrei Kostitsyn scored on a seeing-eye pass from Tomas Plekanec to make it 2-0 2:02 into the game.
The Kostitsyn brothers were making their playoff debut and they showed little signs of nerves with their play early on and Sergei showed he wasn't going to be afraid to play the physical game he has been know for when he laid out a Bruin with a thundering hit in the second period.
The Bruins got one back when Shane Hnidy got one past Carey Price 8:34 into the period, the first playoff goal given up by the Habs rookie goaltender. But Price settled down after that and had a relatively easy night, stopping 17 of 18 shots in a game in which he collected his first NHL playoff win and used his new pads for the first time in game action.
The Canadien with the most playoff experience at 111 games, Bryan Smolinski, gave his team a 3-1 lead in the second period when he collected a rebound infront of Bruins goaltender Tim Thomas and found an opening to his left. Tom Kostopoulos and Mike Komisarek, making a return from a hip injury, collected assists on the goal. For Komisarek, it was his first playoff point in 14 games. Kostopoulos's assist was his first point in his first playoff game.
But Kostopoulos wasn't satisfied with an assist. He scored his first postseason goal in the third period on a nice pass from behind the net from Maxim Lapierre.
Roman Hamrlik brought the crowd to its feet in the middle frame when he absolutely wallpapered Milan Lucic behind Price's net. Leading up to the series, much of the talk was about how physical the Bruins were, but it was the Canadiens that landed more hits during the game, making a statement that they weren't going to be pushed around.
Thomas continued to struggle against the Canadiens, stopping only 27 of 31 shots and all four goals were scored between his legs.
The Bruins went 0-for-3 on the power play, while the Canadiens went 0-for-6.
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Let's not get too cockey. There *are* 15 more wins to go... But if rival coach Julien believes, then that boosts my spirit even more...
http://habsbros.blogspot.com/2008/04/juliens-heartbreaking-account-of.ht...
"As a surviving bomb-victim stumbling around ground-zero with no pants and hair ablaze, so did Julien flounder beneath the Spotlights."
Maybe a bit dramatic, but I think you've earned some poetic license. :) And this one may be the best hockey quote of the year:
"We wanted to be strong on their players but they crushed us unto oblivion. We wanted to get the puck in deep in their zone, get a cycle going and guys in front of the net but their goaler stuffed it down our throats, their defense wiped us out and their attackers slapped us in the face before we knew what was going on."
How in blue blazes do you beat a face-slapping, goal-stuffing team that crushes you into oblivion?!
1. www.flickeringpictures.com - not a hockey site, but still kinda neat
2. Josh Gorges on Montreal's speed: "They're comin', they're comin' and they keep comin'. Just line after line, wave after wave..."
The fans should be credited with an assist on the first goal:
Tim Thomas: "He was in front of me and the crowd was so loud that (defenceman Andrew Ference) didn't hear me say `screen."' said Thomas. "I gave up a rebound and Kostitsyn was on top of it faster than I could believe."
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My ultimate dream: Captain Saku Koivu skating around the Bell Centre holding the Stanley Cup.
LOL yeah, that is priceless!
whata game. i work second shift and listen to the radio on my lil mp3. when the habs score we all let out a big yaaaaaaa!! then i watched entire game recorded from cbc this am.not missin a second of this exciting playoff action !! luved hamerliks hit, koz broz two quickies.there was word out there, oh the habs dont have enough grit to go far in the playoffs. oh ya we were hammering everything out there with a beantown bumm jersey last night baby!! cant wait for saturday!! go habs goooooooo!!!!
An excellent start. Loved the early goals; they threw the Bruins game plan out the window. Habs could have had 8 tonight, they were so superior.
Highlight of the night: The Chara Sandwich, made to order by Begin and Kostopoulos. Highlight #2: Lucic being hit- over and over again.
You know what they say about Saturday night, eh? I expect a couple fights. The Bruins are nothing but frustrated.
Gilbert
Remember '71? Remember '86?
Now is the time to believe. The Drive for 25 Begins! Go Habs Go!
Talking about flawless transition from regular season to postseason dominance! And Begin, Kosto, Hammer & co. just lay a beating on them, i wonder how the Bruins respond to that.. well, they are just too slow anyway.
Missed the first period, perkele. no way i'm gonna miss it on saturday.
No, its not a rumor, TSN the TRONTO sports network already threw in Beantown's bloody towel, thats right sweep. They said it and I agree with them 100%
My prediction for next three games (3 - 0)
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OFFICIAL ESPN CUP PREDICTION: Montreal vs San Jose
Tremblay , sorry about the spelling
If Clarke Gillies gets to be in the hall of fame so does J.C. Trembley
By the way , long time lurker first time poster ...lol our Habs have the last Cup winning goal scorer on the bench, should be good for something, GO HABS.
"our Habs have the last Cup winning goal scorer on the bench, should be good for something"
Who is that? Sorry if that's a stupid question...I guess you mean Kirk Muller. I guess I was just thrown by "on the bench." He's behind the bench, technically, and it wasn't "the last Cup winning goal scorer" it's OUR last Cup winning goal scorer. Anyway, sorry to be nit-picking on such a glorious morning...
Great game for the Habs, they looked like World-Beaters out there. Best I've seen them play in years...To say nothing of the talent level on the roster, I can't give Carbo and the coaching staff enough credit for what they've done to motivate this team. Down to a man, there's an extraordinary level of intensity and committment. Even AK has bought into the system. It's like there's five Carbos out there on the ice. And it's clear that the players respect Carbo -- something rare in the NHL these days.
I don't want to get carried away but this team could go far...last night they were scary good. 15 more wins...it's a lot and we're not there yet but it looks tantilizing possible. Go Habs Go!
O.k All you fellow Habs fans, did not Montreal have 10 rookies in 1986 or am i mistaken, maybe fewer, but i do see similarities, GO HABS
I thought it was 9.
Habs Remain The Bruins Dominatrix
http://wwwrealitycheckeyesontheprize.blogspot.com/2008/04/habs-remain-br...
Kostopoulos Warms Up For Playoffs With A Game Of Street Hockey
http://wwwrealitycheckeyesontheprize.blogspot.com/2008/04/kostopoulos-wa...
My few cents from the peanut gallery:
(1) What an atmosphere at the Bell Centre. Talk about the crowd being a 7th man for the team.
(2) Carey Price did seem a little nervous at first but who can blame him? You have the aspirations of entire city/province on your shoulders. He settled down nicely and made the big save (Sturm) when he had to.
(3) There was a firestorm of criticism about Carbonneau playing Brisebois. Seeing how he had 1 assist and was +1 he did pretty well. You have to give him his due even if I prefer Bouillon or O'Byrne.
(4) With Koivu, Bouillon, Grabovski, Stewart and O'Byrne sitting out - we have lots of options and every player knows it. It also allows players to become healthy and not rush them back. Love that kind of depth.
(5) The fact that we can play four lines and Carbo gives guys like Kostopolous time on the penalty kill just allows us to pound the other team. No wonder we don't have many injuries either.
(6) Lucic is a dirty player (just like McLaren, Byers and Linesman before him) for his shot at Komisarek late in the game. As is Metropolit for the shot on Plekanec in the game as well. No worries we have long memories.
(7) 15 left until 25...
I know it's only one game but judging by what went down last night, I don't trust those damn Bruins and something tells me that they will resort to cheap-shots should they fall behind in the second game. Only thing I'd like to see us improve upon is our PP. One down, three to go.
Doris Day sang "que sera, sera".
Anybody else get to enjoy the honkfest downtown? And there are still 15 to go! :)
www.flickeringpictures.com - not a hockey site, but still kinda neat
for all those media-types who were wondering if our youngsters would be nervous in their first playoff appearance........I would say the answer is....no!!
the kids looked like hungry vet's out there. this team looks to have the perfect mix of young and old.....combined with a good coaching staff. all the fixings for a championship club!
I'm guessing that the line-up would more than likely stay the same. That'd be okay for the most part.
Ultimate Die-Hard Since 1986.
T.
totally, totally outstanding game for our HABS.
The Bruins were never in it, more of this and we'll take it in four, get some rest because the next series will not be this easy.
of course this is only a game one observation...by no means can we say it will be a sweep...until the end of GAME 3!
I was critical of the Breeze prior to puck drop and I won't change my position. Although he was responsible for the first goal and wasn't guilty of any major errors, It would be beneficial to have Obryne in to gain the experience and use Breeze as a fillin when needed.
Bottom Line, when BOULION is ready (probably next game) then who is going to sit?
it will be Breeze, unless Striet moves back up, then your sitting a forward (Dandy) then Breeze stays...not sure if Carb wants to touch the forward lines right now either...
he'll probably keep resting Boulion...what A PROBLEM TO HAVE!
ya!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
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1. THIS IS WAR
1. We will win the CUP
2. The BELL CENTRE should be rebuilt to sit 80,000 fans
3. Beware of the T.R.S.
I wonder if Carbo wanted to shield O'Byrne from the first game, with the intensity and crowd, etc., let him experience it from the stands first, then throw him into the second game, or perhaps Sunday in Boston.
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My ultimate dream: Captain Saku Koivu skating around the Bell Centre holding the Stanley Cup.
Just a few random thoughts on the game.
Almost total domination by the Habs. In hits, in speed, in goals, in goaltending, puck control, you name it, we dominated. Well, except for the PP. The Bruins were penalized 8 times. But it looked like Carbo wisely told the guys to run down the clock instead of running up the score at the end of the game. We had no shots on net for 2 minutes at the end during the 5-on-3. Also the 8th penalty was with half a minute left. So you could say that the PP was seriously trying to score on only 5 of the 8 penalties. Good call by Carbo to run down the clock. Anything can happen in the last few minutes. An injury. A fight to lift the spirits of the Bruins. So it was smart not to poke them with a stick and rile them up in the last few minutes. Just send them to the dressing room frustrated and pissed off.
All goals were 5-on-5. And was that a goal for each line? I'm not sure. As others have noted, 3 of our goals were scored by playoff virgins – Kostopoulos and the Kostitsyn brothers. Way to go guys.
Josh Gorges and Mark Streit were the only Canadiens d-men with a +2 for the night. They both played over 18 minutes, but were well short of 22:44 played by Markov and the team high 23:51 played by Hamrlik. All the defense played well. Hamrlik was brutal.
I thought Lapierre played very well. He made a great pass on the Kostopoulos goal. He was skating well, making hits, shooting the puck (a team high 5 shots), being a pain in the ass, and he was really mixing it up in front of the Boston net and causing problems for the goalie. However, he was terrible on face offs, winning just 6 of 16. On the other line, Pleks made up for that by winning 13 of 19.
Brisebois played fairly well. He assisted on the first goal and was a +1 for the night with 2 shots on goal. So Carbo wasn’t so dumb going with experience. O’Byrne will be back with attitude, probably in Boston on Sunday.
Smolinski has been playing well and vindicating BG for picking him up as a UFA last summer. 3 goals in his last 3 games, including an important one tonight that put us up 3-1 early in the second period. He’s also been good on face offs, although tonight he was only 6 for 12. Not so bad either.
A great and entertaining game. I’m looking forward to Saturday.
Not really a goal from each line, but a points from players from each line. Higgins line first goal, Pleks 2nd, Smo 3rd, Kosto's on the Smo line but Lapierre got an assist. Overall, balanced scoring. this is what will bring us success, and I must say, the defense (forwards and D) are doing better at cutting down the shots against.
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My ultimate dream: Captain Saku Koivu skating around the Bell Centre holding the Stanley Cup.
Good post Bill. Great observation on Carbonneau not running up the score. That is indeed a sign of maturity on his part. We should grab a game together on the television at some place in Markham maybe? Send me an email.
It took me three bars to find place that actually was carrying the game in the area... Where I finally found 3 other CT Habs fans fans cheering on Les Boys. I missed the first half of the game, but I cheered like a maniac through the second half!!!
Just got my wireless working again, god damnit! Ok. My observations after I had time to cool off.
Solid game by the Habs. The start was a dynamite, then the let off just for a bit, but regained their dominance towards the second period and never looked back. You could see Price had jitters in the beginning but was cool cucumber self after a few stops.
Hammer was amazing tonight, especially considering the fact that he had to play with brisbois. (btw, can we now end this sad experiment and put OB back in?) I cannot believe CAlgary just let him walk. He brings so much stability to our defense corps.
Kovi's line was good but I thought that Kovalev was a bit off his game. Too many uncharacteristic turn overs, but none that cause any trouble though. Smoks line looked great and so did Lapierre and Lats.
I think Bruins were a bit surprised by Habs physical game and never really adjusted. I am sure they will try to play hit for hit next game, but its hard to hit when Habs are just killing them with speed.
Anyway... great game, great crowd and lets not drag it beyond next tuesday.
Textbook Bruin-beating game! Thomas must go into shock when he plays the habs! The Bruins are too slow. Chara looked tired and defeated (of course by the end of the game he was both)
But keep your stick on the ice - don't get cocky! Focus on game 2.
Go Habs Go!
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Habs Fans! The BEST fans with the best team!
Couldn't ask for better!!! the ambiance was electrifying and the habs played really superb, everything you'd hope for was there, the checking, the intensity, the " bousculades"....can't wait until the next game!!! THOMAS THOMAS THOMAS.....CHARA CHARA CHARA CHARA...loved it!!!
keep it going habs and habs fans!